How to pick a silver fern

The Springboks have put themselves in a great position to reach yet another milestone in world rugby history. By beating the all-blacks this Saturday they become first team in about a decade to record back to back wins against the New Zealanders.

South Africa have momentum and confidence on their side, whilst the Kiwis have resilience, wet weather experience and a few game breakers who could easily upset the apple cart at the weekend.

The Springbok pack completely dominated in the first test – which put SA top of the log – lineouts, tackle ball and scrumming where all equaled if not bested by arguably the best tight five in the world at the moment and in Heinrich Brusouw they have the best openside fetcher on form in the world – a terrier of epic proportions and the find of the year. Add to this the enormous amount of caps amassed by John Smit's Boks over the past 6 years.

The backlines are where things start to become hazy. Both backlines possess amazing players capable of some of the best tries you'll ever see, but maybe because of the way the game has gone since it became professional, backlines (and wings) are seeing very little ball for large parts of the game. The only way to get better is to practice and without sufficient ball backlines will be rusty which accounted for the slue of handling errors we saw last week. 10 by the Boks and 9 by the all blacks is far too many for an international match on a dry and windless high veld evening.

Mornre Steyn will be eager, as he gets a start this week, to make up for his pitiful attapempt on Conrad Smith which lead to the no. 13 getting over for a try that never should have been. Steyn's kicking will take centre stage this Saturday as it looks likely to rain.

Nothing to lose and everything too gain for the Boks makes this one a humdinger. New Zealand have the lads and minerals to pull off an upset, so please folks I implore you: enjoy.

SGR

Could this be the best team in Springbok history?

With 14 of the Springbok match day squad holding World Cup winners medals, this could well be the best Bok team in recent years. The 22 man squad contains a total of 754 test caps (which averages out to around 34 caps per person). This includes Brian Habanna and Jean DeVilliers who will be awarded their 50th cap as well as John Smit (85 caps) who will break the world record of most matches as test captain with his 60th appearance in that role.

On top of that, on paper the three least experienced players in the team Heinrick Brussow(5 caps), Morne Steyn (4 caps) and Tendai "the Beast" Mtawarira (14 caps) have proven to be Bok stars in their own right. The Beast has taken 2 Super 14 seasons and one and a half Springboks seasons to make himself a household name, any Springbok supporter would be a lier if they said they had not screamed BEAST at the T.V screen atleast once in the last 18 months. Heinrick Brussow took his chance against the B&I Lions when Burger was banned and has proven to the world that he is a contender for Richie Mcaws title as best open side in the world. Last but not least, Morne Steyn, I can hear all the B&I Lions fans across the globe shudder at the name. Steyn has waited in the wings, playing his best rugby in the 2009 Super 14 for the Bulls. He got his chance in the second test against the B&I Lions, in his first match he stopped Ugo Monye scoring what could have been a match winning try. In the second test with the air of a seasoned veteran, slotted a 50 meter penalty to win the series.

When you add the world class combinations of Bakkies and Victor(lock), Jaque and Jean(center), Fourie and M Steyn(half-back), Smith and Brussow(flanks) and of course Brian and JP(wings) you can start to see the winning formula. To that I must add that Frans Steyn has started to silence his critics by settling well in his position at fullback, and the formidable sight of Bismark, Smit and the Beast in the front row is enough to frighten any opposition coach. Spies too has played some cracking rugby in his time and I'm sure his best is still to come.

The bench is shaping up too, Ricky Januarie, Jannie Du Plessis, Dannie Rossouw and Wynand Olivier hold world cup winners medals and the later two holding Super 14 winners medals. The rest is made up of Chiliboy Ralepelle, Andries Bekker and Adi Jacobs, who can complain about having a former Springboks captain (Ralepelle), the proven campaigner (Jacobs) and the rising star (Bekker) in the mix?

However the only way this team will prove themselves to be the best Bok squad in history will be to win the 2009 Tri-Nations. While the campaign has started well, there is still a long way to go, and it continues this weekend with a possible record second consecutive home win over the All Blacks.

The Springbok team is (Test caps in brackets):
15. Frans Steyn (31)
14. JP Pietersen (27)
13. Jaque Fourie (46)
12. Jean de Villiers (49)
11. Bryan Habana (49)
10. Morné Steyn (4)
9. Fourie du Preez (47)
8. Pierre Spies (23)
7. Juan Smith (58)
6. Heinrich Brüssow (5)
5. Victor Matfield (84)
4. Bakkies Botha (58)
3. John Smit (85) – Captain
2. Bismarck du Plessis (25)
1. Tendai Mtawarira (14)

Reserves:
16. Chiliboy Ralepelle (5)
17. Jannie du Plessis (8)
18. Andries Bekker (15)
19. Danie Rossouw (39)
20. Ricky Januarie (36)
21. Adi Jacobs (23)
22. Wynand Olivier (23)

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Springboks Team to face the All Blacks

Springbok team:

Frans Steyn, JP Pietersen, Jaque Fourie, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Morne Steyn, Fourie du Preez, Pierre Spies, Juan Smith, Heinrich Brussow, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, John Smit (captain), Bismarck du Plessis, Tendai Mtawarira.

Reserves: Chiliboy Ralepelle, Jannie du Plessis, Andries Bekker, Danie Rossouw, Ricky Januarie, Adi Jacobs, Wynand Olivier.

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Campaign for Rugby 7's at the Olympics

This is the official video that was released by the IRB in the campaign to make rugby an Olympic sport once again. Support the cause at: www.olympic-rugby.org


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Olivier recalled as back up to the "Smash and Dash" combination of Fourie and DeVilliers.

The moment that every green and gold blooded South African has been waiting for (since the opening match of the 2007 RWC against Samoa where DeVilliers tore his bicep) is just around the corner, the Smash and Dash combination of Jaque Fourie and Jean DeVilliers is reborn this Saturday. At their peak, these two phenomenal centers were arguable as significant to the Springbok back line as Victor Matfeild and Bakkie Botha are to the Boks pack.
The inform Olivier was recalled to the Boks squad this week to replace the injured Adi Jacobs, thus allowing Fourie to reclaim his rightful place along side DeVilliers in the Bok center. Jacobs has been struggling with a groin injury throughout the winter internationals against the Lions. As I'm sure most would agree, we now have the top three centers in South Africa playing for the Boks. While there are still some people who doubt Oliveir, his current form speaks for itself. Adi Jacobs has played well over the last 12 months while Fourie has been recovering from a series of injuries, but now that the Golden Lions star player is back, he MUST start along side DeVilliers. Without the finishing skills of Fourie, we may well have lost the second test against the Lions and perhaps even the series.

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Springbok Team to play New Zealand this weekend

Springbok team: Francois Steyn, JP Pietersen, Jaque Fourie, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Ruan Pienaar, Fourie du Preez, Pierre Spies, Juan Smith, Heinrich Brussow, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, <>John Smit (captain), Bismarck du Plessis, Tendai Mtawarira.

Reserves: Chiliboy Ralepelle, Jannie du Plessis, Danie Rossouw, Ryan Kankowski, Ricky Januarie, Morne Steyn, Wynand Olivier.

Currie Cup Results: Week 2

18 July: Bulls 30 - 22 Western Province
18 July: Griquas 36 - 11 Leopards
18 July: Lions 31 - 22 Cheetahs
17 July: Sharks 46 - 10 Boland

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George Smith Reaches 100 test Caps for Australia

Today George Smith reached the milestone of 100 test caps as a Wallabie. Since his debut in 2000 against France, Smith has played with all the ferocity and skill that is expected of an international flanker. He is the most capped Australian forward and the first flanker to reach 100 test caps in world history. He spent the 2008 season captaining the Brumbies through the Super 14 and captained the Wallabies on numerous occasion.

From the team at Rugby Window, we all take our hats off to you George, hope to see you in many more matches to come.

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All-Blacks edge past Wallabies

The 2009 Tri-Nations kicked off with the first of the Bledisloe Cup matches. This match was a credit to how close this years competition promises to be, with the on form Wallabies fronting up to the All-Blacks in Auckland. Australia got off to a flying start with Barnes crossing the try line in the first 5 minutes of the match, completing a well worked team try. With the wind behind them the Wallabies continued to dominate of the first 25 minutes, with Gitteau slotting two penalties to make the lead 13-3. The first half was a struggle for New Zealand with many of their top players being starved of game time due to injury. The line out was not functioning correctly loosing two of their throw in's during the first half. After a rusty first 30 minutes from the All-Black captain, Richie McCaw, he clawed back some credibility by scoring the only New Zealand try to go into the break 13-10. This set up a great second half, in the 45 minute the All-Black coaching staff started bringing on the subs and this proved to be the difference. With the wind behind him Stephan Donald kicked four penalties to Giteaus one which left the final score at 22-16 to the All-Blacks. This game was massively physical, with George Smith and Wycliffe Paulu doing some great work on the ground for Australia. Jarome Kayno and Rodney Soalo stood out for New Zealand. As the great All-Black Tano Umange once said about the Tri-Nations; "well it isn't tiddly winks". This Tri-Nations could the the hardest and closest competition in years.

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Springbok Squad to play the All-Blacks this weekend

Springbok squad:

Forwards: Andries Bekker (Western Province), Bakkies Botha (Blue Bulls), Heinrich Brüssow (Free State Cheetahs), Bismarck du Plessis (Sharks), Jannie du Plessis (Sharks), Ryan Kankowski (Sharks), Victor Matfield (Blue Bulls), Tendai Mtawarira (Sharks), Chiliboy Ralepelle (Blue Bulls), Danie Rossouw (Blue Bulls), John Smit (Sharks - captain) Juan Smith (Free State Cheetahs), Pierre Spies (Blue Bulls)

Backs: Jean de Villiers (Western Province), Fourie du Preez (Blue Bulls), Jaque Fourie (Lions), Bryan Habana (Blue Bulls), Adi Jacobs (Sharks), Ricky Januarie (Western Province), Ruan Pienaar (Sharks). JP Pietersen (Sharks), Frans Steyn (Sharks), Morné Steyn (Blue Bulls).

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